Thursday 9 August 2012 08.29 EDT
First published on Thursday 9 August 2012 08.29 EDT

José Mourinho has said Kaká can leave Real Madrid this summer, but only for the right price.

The Brazilian midfielder has been linked with a return to Milan and was in sparkling form with two assists as Real thrashed his old club 5-1 in a friendly on Wednesday night. But with Real still chasing Tottenham Hotspur's Luka Modric, and Angel di María and Mesut Ozil seemingly above Kaká in the pecking order, it is likely the former World Player of the Year will become surplus to requirements once the season gets underway.

Mourinho said: "If Kaká stays I would be happy and I am happy if he wants to go. In football it is normal that the players play where they want. He is a very good footballer and prepared to be at his maximum level. If he decides to stay, then perfect. If he goes, that's perfect too but we are not going to give him away for free. Those that want him have to pay for him."

The Madrid manager, meanwhile, is happy with how his side's pre-season preparations are going after the defeat of the Italian side. Di María's opener had been cancelled out by Robinho to leave the score level at half-time but Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice before late goals from Sergio Ramos and José María Callejón rounded off a perfect evening for the Spanish champions.

However, the Portuguese coach became the latest manager to publicly criticise the scheduling of international friendlies for the middle of next week, days before the Spanish season kicks off on 18 August.

"There were various motives to play some players a bit longer," he said. "For the stadium, the opponent, the marvellous crowd and the development of our own pre-season.

"There have been players who played more than 45 minutes because they have played the highest number of minutes in pre-season, whilst there are players like Cristiano who have to play more because they are part of the show. The most important thing is that it was a good training session in our pre-season preparations.

"The bad thing is though that the players leave on Monday for their national teams and don't return till Thursday, when we start the league on Sunday. I hope that the national team managers have reason with the players and the clubs.

"It is a difficult preparation. The players are preparing for the season and then they go to serve their country. We have to accept it, but it is difficult."